Miffy the Artist

by Joseph ShawJuly 21, 2013

In this tale, Miffy, the internationally renowned white rabbit from the Netherlands develops a passion for art after a visit to a gallery.

Inspired by the all the works she sees, from still life to sculptures and abstracts – “Miffy had never seen a blue sun before” – Miffy picks up some crayons in green, red, blue and yellow – a palette not dissimilar to her creator’s – and begins to draw. That night, Miffy does not need a bedtime story, falling asleep to dreams of the pictures she will draw the next day. Miffy may lack in expression and emotion (by design), but she soon proceeds to be coloured by the objects around her and the activities she takes part in, as well as the simple, matter-of-fact language on each page.

When children do set this book aside, it is likely to only be in favour of a set of colourful crayons

Miffy is the minimalist creation of Dick Bruna, instantly recognisable around the world for her dots for eyes, criss-cross for a mouth and the primary-coloured world that surrounds her. Despite her humble beginnings, she has been translated into 40 different languages, with over 118 of her adventures published, all in the same 12-page, 15.5cm square format.

Author NotesDick Bruna was born in Utrecht in the Netherlands in 1927; in 1943, his family went into hiding during the Second World War. During that time, Dick kept himself occupied with drawing and painting. Some designers and illustrators who worked for his father’s publishing company would come to visit the Bruna family at their place of hiding, and would give him drawing lessons. Travelling to Paris after the war, Bruna discovered the works of artists including Matisse and Leger and spent more and more of his time drawing and painting, and after joining his father’s publishing company (AW Bruna & Zoon) he designed some 2,000 book covers and posters. In 1953, he started creating his own picture books and in 1955 the first Miffy book was published. There are now almost 30 different Miffy titles and they have sold over 85 million copies. The Dick Bruna House dedicated to Dick Bruna and his creation, Miffy was opened in Utrecht in 2006.